Internally expanding friction clutch or brake



July 24, 195l c. B. sPAsE 2,561,955

INTERNALLY EXPANDING FRICTION CLUTCH OR BRAKE Filed June 8. 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 A JNVENToR. CHRLEs B. SPnsE Btw faktor-nels Patented July Z4, 41,951

C f I UToH R BRAKE? Charlesy Bi Spase; Nedrow, assigner toLipe- Rollway Corporation, SyraolsegffN. Y., a' corpo'- ration of New York" Anplcat'inncnefs, 1948, serial No, 31,768 iclim# (Cl. 192:65)

This invention tentent@ friction: clutches andipbrakes, and has .for its-object a-=clutch-or brake embodying an intermediate-:annular ele-iv ment of friction material"having'f-ahcylindrical friction face on one'side thereof concentric -with the axis Yoff: the -clutch or` brake, vvlfiiclri-` engags a complemental cylindrical friction face yonanotherelement andslips thereonwhen being A-applied and Icapabletof slipping-thereon until,A as inthe ,case of a lclutch, the clutch-'isfully kengaged, andalso-"having-opposing conical faces on its oppositeside. with. which-members of a pair having Acormplemental faces coact when thev clutch or ,brake is being engagedl vor applied; the pairy of members having-:a'relative'rv axialfshift# ing: movement toengage vtlfiefxconical faces of thevintermediate element and to release the same.

The ,invention consists-:inf the 14novel features mediate' element l of-A friction materiali'1v as moulded fiber, oatingly mounted between the outer and inner elements and having a cylindrical friction face on one side thereof for coacting with a cylindrical face of one ofthe former elements, and having opposing oppositely inclined conical friction faces on the other side thereof for coacting with complemental conical faces on the members of the pair, said members having a relative axial oper-` ating movement to cause their conical faces to engage those of the intermediate member, or to release therefrom.

The numeral I designates the driving element of a clutch, this being shown as mounted upon the fly Wheel 2 of an engine, the driving element' I having an internal cylindrical frictionface 3.

4 and 5 designate a pair of driven members constituting the inner or driven element of the clutch;=one'vofthesemembersfas 5,' being splined onf-the clutch`shaft 6 `and shiftable axially therff,f-and the other -member 4 Abeing Aslidable yaxially on andi rotatable Withv a hub on the meinber. These inner members 4, 5, are formed Withiperipheral conical faces l, B, respectively, inclined'oppos'itelyvto? each other, or from the opposite ends of said members inwardly. The conical faces are concentricyvith the axis" of the "clutchandein cross section inclined slightly out of parallelism withy the axis of fthe clutch inf'cntradist'inction to out of `a plane radial with the axis- 9"'dsi'gnates-anf intermediate element of frictinioravmoulded b'er materiaL-this' having a cylindrical peripheral frictionface I0, andalso inte''r'ia'l:2 conical`r faces IIy and-1f I2 on opposite ends-thereof complemental to 11s-heV faces 'I and 8 of'lthe memberslp 5, respectively,- and coacting inclir'iedlpla'ne,v fashion therewith;

Inthelcas'e of 4'a clutch, the operatingmechanism'for the lmembers 1L-.5, consists of 'spring means-@arranged to shift the v'members 4, 5,

, 'axiallyftovvard each other'and-thus bring their conical yfacesl, and 8 in Contact with the complemetifacesf II and I2 of the-intermediate el'eifentllfand the members 4,- 5, are separated toll isengage saidconical faces by operatoroperatedfmeans. As' here illustrated,the member 5"'isff`fformed with an offset-outer hub pori tele's'coping'fin an'enlargedy axial openuother'member Mandthe hub portion itlfx'in yit a second hub I4 slidably splined on"i trie shaft* s;-

nps-"includes a series of'an-` Hiller v0 P springs Ititlin the, hub potion I stand-- interpostaV between ffftne end wail of the hub portion I3 and a back plate I6 which is connected to the member 4 by bolts Il slid- ,able through holes in the member 5 and anback plate I5. The back plate I6 is secured, as at I9, to the bolts Il adjacent their heads I8 against axial shifting movement relatively to the bolts. The springs I5, which are initially loaded through the back plate I5 and the bolts I 1, tend to shift the member 4 toward the member 5, and the thrust of the springs directly against the end Wall of the hub portion I3 of the member 5 tends to shift the member 5 to- Ward the member 4. The intermediate element 9, being floatingly mounted, can center itself to conform to the conica1 faces l and lIl of the members 4, 5.

' plate I5 and, through the bolts I1, presses the member 4 away from the member 5, thus separating the member 4 and its conical face 'I from the conical face II of the intermediate member 9 and permitting the intermediate member 9 to release its face I2 from the conical face 8l of the member 5.

For the'purpose of assembling the clutch parts and holding them assembled until the clutch is installed, bolts 23, shown in broken lines, extend through the back plate and axially through some of the springs and thread into the end Wall of the hub portion I3. After the clutch is installed, these bolts 23 are removed.

In the clutch here shown, there are eight springs I5 in the annular series, and only three or four bolts 23 are used to hold the clutch assembled until installed. y y.

The intermediate element 9 is composed of floating segments 9a arc shaped in general form.

In operation, While the outer element I is rotating and the clutch disengaged, the segments 921 frictionally engage and rotate with the element I. that is when the conical faces I and 8 are engaged with the conical faces II and I2, the friction is greater atthese conical vfaces than at the outer cylindrical face of the intermediate element 9. Therefore, any slippage occurring while the clutch is engaged, or engaging, occurs between the cylindrical faces and hence, there is no differential slippage between the engagedv cylindrical faces, and there being no differential slippage, the heat generated in the elementi is' uniform throughout said element, and no distortion or warping of the element I due to differential heating can occur, Due to the conical faces, but little relative axial shifting movement of the members 4, 5, is required to engage and disen-y gage the clutch and no operating mechanism in-` When, however, the clutch is engaged,

4 tirely relieve the engine shaft and its bearings of axial thrusts, any incidental thrust axially toward the crank shaft of the engine is taken by a shoulder or ring 24 interlocked with the clutch shaft 6. The member 4 is keyed or splined to the periphery of the hub portion I3 by keys 25 of any suitable construction.

What `Iclaim is: f

A friction clutch or brake comprising an outer rotatable element having an internal cylindrical friction face, an inner element comprising opposing members concentric with, and mounted to rotate relative to, the outer element and having relative axial shifting movement one toward and from the other, the inner members having opposing oppositely inclined peripheral conical faces, and a floating intermediate annular element of friction material between the outer and inner elements and having a peripheral cylindrical face for coacting with the inner cylindrical face of the outer element, and oppositely inclined conical faces on opposite ends thereof coacting inclined plane fashion with the conical faces of the inner members, a back plate opposed to one of said members and said one member having an outer hollow hub portion on which the other member is mounted to slide axially,- and an inner hub member slidably splined on the clutch shaft, bolts anchored to the back plate against axial movement relatively thereto, slidably extended through the adjacent inner member outside of Athe outer hub portion and anchored to the other inner member, compression springs within the outer hub portion and thrusting at their opposite ends against the back plate and the end wall of said outer hub portion, and a non-rotatable throw-out collar shiftable axially of the clutch shaft and non-rotatable relatively thereto and having an annular shoulder located to thrust against the inner margin of the back plate when the throw-out collar is operated 'to disengage the clutch.

f CHARLES B. SPASE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in,VV the file lof this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Date Great Britain Jan. 2a, 1932,'- 

